Odisha Youth Held For Duping NTPC Staff Of Rs 34.37 Lakh Through Fake FB Account

Bhubaneswar: The Cyber Crime and Economic Offences police station here apprehended a youth for allegedly committing financial fraud and duping an NTPC employee of over Rs 34.37 lakh through a fake Facebook account.

The accused, identified as Sreedhar Moharana (26), was arrested following investigation into his alleged involvement in a series of cybercrimes and financial scams.

Police said the accused had created a fake Facebook profile in the name of Shibani Panda and had been luring unsuspecting victims with a profile picture of an attractive young woman. He had also fabricated a false story, claiming to be an MBBS student at a prominent medical college in Odisha.

The accused would establish contact with individuals and initiate conversations through messenger apps. He gained the trust of his victims and then proceeded to exchange contact information, including phone numbers.

Moharana managed to gain the trust of the victim, Ankit Kumar Gupta, who is posted as a junior engineer in Chhattisgarh, and later took Rs 34.37 lakh in last one year on the pretext of treatment of his ailing father and medical course. He, however, became suspicious when the accused avoided to meet him and lodged a complaint on September 5.

Police have seized mobile phones, laptop, debit cards of different banks and one ID card from the accused, who was staying on rent in Cuttack. His antecedents is being verified and further investigation is in progress.